Monster on Our Land

Chapter 8 : Monster on Our Land

A day had passed. James started work at his new company. James couldn't do it well. From the moment he started working until his lunch break, he couldn't focus on what was in front of him. James repeatedly entered the wrong data, so there was some commotion. But eventually, James got over it.

Now James could only sit listlessly in the office cafeteria, looking at the cold pasta. The soda still looked fresh, with water spots on the glass.

He realized that the existence of monsters was messing with his mind. Fear after fear kept appearing, even the delicious food in front of her could not make her appetite.

"Haaah... I'm really messed up," James complained. He picked up the glass of soda and took three sips. The bubbles popping in his mouth did little to whet his appetite.

James had no appetite, but saying he wasn't hungry would be a lie. Finally, he picked up a fork and rolled the pasta in front of him, starting to chew on the noodles.

It was bland. James couldn't taste anything from the pasta. The sweet and sour flavor of the sauce was just bitter on his tongue. His thoughts of the monsters that might hunt him numbed his tongue.

James forced himself to eat it, but he ate only five spoonfuls. He would rather drink a soda than eat the delicious-looking pasta.

"Is it going to be like this? I'll die someday if I don't eat enough," he complained again.

Someone suddenly came and sat before him, carrying the same pasta and drink as James.

"Excuse me, buddy. You're new, right? I'm new here too. Meet me. I'm Rio," the skinny man said as he stuck out his hand.

James, with a hesitant look on his face, took the hand and greeted him.

"I'm James," he replied.

James looked closely at Rio's face, he didn't want the man in front of him to turn out to be a monster. James held his breath, concentrating on all parts of Rio's body.

Rio himself became uncomfortable, he also looked around his body because he thought something was wrong with his clothes.

"What are you looking at? Is there something on my clothes?" asked Rio.

James gasped, he turned his gaze to the pasta in front of him.

"Ah, no. Sorry, there's nothing wrong with your clothes," James replied.

Rio narrowed his eyes slightly, suspecting something. James rolled the pasta again and put it in his mouth. Bland, he tasted it again.

"Are you looking for scales on my body?" Rio asked suddenly.

James choked. He took the soda water and gulped it down. He didn't expect Rio to ask such a question.

"Y-you're...part of them?" asked James starting to tremble.

James seemed to back away a little, but Rio grabbed his wrist, preventing him from moving away. James' hair stood on end as the man's hand touched him.

"Why are you scared, James? Am I a ghost? I'm a normal human being."

"T-then...si-scales?" James started to turn pale. His hands became cold, Rio could feel it from the hand he was holding.

"Oh, sorry, did I scare you?" Rio released his grip. He then brought his face closer to James.

"It's a secret, James. But I accidentally saw something strange in the restroom. I saw that the Section Chief's face had some scales. It looks like he has a rare disease," Rio whispered.

Instead of thinking positively, knowing Rio was human, James felt even more frightened by Rio's statement. His ears became tense, and his heartbeat quickened. His eyes bulged, his lips turned pale blue.

"It would be a shame to have a strange disease, but something like that can't be allowed, right? If it were me, I'd be."

"Shhh!" James put his index finger to his lips, telling Rio to be quiet. "Please don't go on!"

Rio furrowed his brows in astonishment at James' attitude. He seemed to be afraid of everything he said.

"What are you afraid of?"

James ignored Rio's question. His eyes focused on the people in the room. Everyone there looked at Rio sharply, without blinking.

*

Four hours later, the Head of the Section that Rio was talking about walked into James' office. 

"Everyone, we have an emergency. Immediately put away all your work and listen to me! An unexpected incident occurred in our office. A new worker named Rio Sera was found dead in the restroom with stab wounds and cuts on several parts of his limbs. The police are investigating this incident. I hope you can cooperate in their investigation!" he said.

"Yes, sir!" everyone in the room exclaimed, except James.

James realized that this was no ordinary murder case. The murder must have been committed by the monsters in this place. According to their rules, humans who knew the secrets of the monsters would be killed immediately.

He looked at his office mates. James realized that they were all 'smiling' after the announcement. James felt a deep sense of horror. His body became cold, and his face pale. James sat down limply. He stared blankly at the glowing monitor screen flashing the spreadsheet.

James then gasped when a hand grabbed his shoulder. He turned his head and saw one of his coworkers named Ronald.

"Did I startle you? Are you okay? You look pale. Are you sick?" Ronald asked with a smile.

"Umh..no...I'm just worried...a-I'm scared of the killer," James replied.

"Don't worry, buddy. No one will harm you. The police will take care of everything later."

James smiled wryly and hesitantly. James knew from Ronald's calm demeanor that he must be a monster! James felt the tense atmosphere in the room. He just resigned himself to waiting for the police to arrive.

*

James locked all the doors and windows in his house. Today's incident at the office made him distrust everyone he met. Rio, who previously only accidentally saw one of the monsters, became a corpse in no time. Then what about James, who even killed one of them while with Anne?

This thought frightened her. He immediately grabbed the cell phone that Anne had given him earlier. He called Anne without hesitation.

[Hello, James? Tell me what happened? Do you need my help?]

"Anne! My workplace is full of monsters! They killed a human!" James said frantically.

[Calm yourself, James. Are they after you?]

"No, but they're everywhere!"

[As long as you keep quiet, you'll be safe. Trust me, James.]

"Huh? They won't find out, right?"

[Of course not. Jessica is dead, right? No other monster knows who you are]

James furrowed his brow. He again felt that something was forgotten, something was missing. He paused momentarily until he remembered the first time he came to this town.

"Wait...there are monsters who know about it. The monsters from the Funeral Home," James said with bulging eyes.

It wasn't long before knocking came from the front door. James felt goosebumps spread all over his body, he didn't expect to have a visitor so soon.

"Anne! Help me!"